By Chris Cunningham
The Scene staff
St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay didn’t make any friends at Forest Park last week.
He cancelled his appearance at a mayoral debate on campus, disappointing students, staff and other audience members.
“The mayor can’t be in two places at once,” said his campaign manager, Richard Callow, when called a few hours before the event. “There is another forum tonight.”
Callow did not give specifics.
The cancellation Monday turned the event Wednesday into a “town hall meeting” at the Mildred E Bastian Center for the Performing Arts. Slay’s opponents, Lewis Reed and Jimmie Matthews, and two local business leaders shared the stage.
Forest Park student Steve Jamerson, 50, came to the event not knowing Slay had cancelled. He wanted to hear his plans for the City of St. Louis.
“I learned Mayor Slay didn’t think enough of students to show up,” he said.
Habitha Gayfield, 50, a customer service agent for Enterprise Rent-a-Car, also was disappointed that Slay cancelled. But she gave him the benefit of the doubt.
“I know politicians have engagements and things come up,” she said.
Forest Park had been planning the mayoral debate for weeks, along with its partners, the League of Women Voters, St. Louis Business Journal and Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists.
Slay’s cancellation caused the League of Women Voters and the St. Louis Business Journal to withdraw.
“Obviously, it would have been ideal to have all the candidates,” said Debbie Monks, circulation sales manager for the St. Louis Business Journal. “We are disappointed about how the format has changed.”
Up until last week, Monks had been operating as the debate’s audience development coordinator.
Angelic Cole, assistant professor of business administration, was the Forest Park representative who coordinated the event. She helped line up a panel of students and others to ask questions.
“Of course, I’m disappointed,” Cole said. “I’d prefer to have all the candidates. I thought it’d be a great learning experience (for students).”
The St. Louis American, a newspaper that serves the black community, interpreted Slay’s cancellation as a “snub” against the Greater Association of Black Journalists.
In an article Tuesday, the newspaper reported that in early February Callow said Slay would participate in the debate.
‘Organizers said Callow stopped returning their calls and emails about two weeks ago,” the article stated.
“Then on Monday, Callow mailed back the League of Women Voters’ response card with an ‘X’ checked on the ‘I will not be able to attend the town hall meeting (option).’”
After Slay’s cancellation, the event became a town hall meeting with the theme “Retooling and Remapping St. Louis: How Powerful is the Vote?”
The panel consisted of Reed, Matthews, Alex Fennoy, senior vice president of Midwest Bank; and James Clark, vice president of community outreach at Better Life.
Most audience members seemed to support Reed, judging by their frequent applause.
Forest Park student Darlene Holmes, 48, had been undecided about who to support for mayor before Wednesday. The event helped her make up her make mind.
“Reed made me respect him,” she said. “I’m going to start campaigning for him Monday.”